Persuasive: Ipecac

Sei Eguchi
State University of New York at Plattsburgh

Such a feelin's comin' over me
There is wonder in most everything I see
Not a cloud in the sky
Got the sun in my eyes
And I won't be surprised if it's a dream

This is a famous song entitled "Top Of The World" by carpenters. 21
years have passed since Karen Carpenter died. Most people know the cause of
her death. Karen suffered from the eating disorder, anorxia nervousa. Actually,
according to Rader Programs, the organization providing treatments for the eating
disorder, she died from the misuse of Ipecac syrup. Ipecac syrup caused severe
damage to her heart, which eventually led to her going into cardiac arrest and
subsequently dying. During the course of speech, first, we want to discuss the
dangers associated with Ipecac Syrup. Next, we want to examine the harmful effect
of Ipecac Syrup. Finally, we want to examine some possible solution for preventing
such a problem.

The daily updated web news issued by Oklahoma college of Pharmacy says that
Ipecac Syrup is made up of Ipecac, a plant extract that causes vomiting when
swallowed. The syrup is intended to be used to make a person vomit in case of
a poison emergency. Fortunately, Ipecac Syrup is widely believed the most effective
and safest means of treating poisoning. According to AAP.org, website updated
daily, parents should keep a bottle of Ipecac Syrup at home for every child
under six because poisonings are very common. In fact, Penn State Medical Center
in November 2003 reported that estimated 2 million poisonings occur each year.
And unfortunately, Ipecac Syrup was the preferred remedy by most families and
hospital. Furthermore, according to Georgia Poison Center, the shelf of Ipecac
Syrup is only five years and Dr. Milton Tenenbein, director of the Manitoba,
Canada, poison control center, pointed out that most Americans purchase Ipecac
Syrup because they now have a newborn to protect. Unfortunately, Florida Poison
Center Aug 18 2003 reports most Ipecac Syrup have a shelf life of several years
both in drug store or at home. This is especially threatening. According to
the study of the Academy of Clinical Toxicology, Induced vomiting from Ipecac
Syrup actually can do more harm than good

We can say Ipecac Syrup is dangerous. Drug and Poison Information Center in
November 2003, provides further evidence. He discovered Ipecac syrup sometimes
causes prolonged vomiting and lethargy similar to drowsiness that might be caused
by an overdose of sedative pills. Moreover, Pale Reflections.com, the organization
for Eating Disorders last updated February 29 2004 says that Ipecac causes severe
vomiting but can have many side-effects, both short-term and long-term. These
side-effects include dizziness, nausea, stomach cramps, respiratory difficulties,
fast or irregular heartbeat, seizures and pneumonia. If the ipecac is not vomited
or an individual overdoses, it can cause serious heart problems and even death.
Therefore, the misuse of Ipecac Syrup is unquestionably dangerous.

Two common situations of Ipecac Syrup when is misused are overdose and diet
abuse. Barbara Insley Crouch, director of the Utah Poison Control believes frequent
use of ipecac drains the body of valuable nutrients such as potassium, which
causes dehydration and could have a harmful effect on the heart. Also, according
to the daily updated online encyclopedia by medical network inc., because ipecac
stays in the body for a long time, damage to the heart frequently occurs in
persons who repeatedly take ipecac to induce vomiting. The Adverse Event Report
System May 6 2003 revealed 17 adverse events in which Ipecac was used to treat
accidental ingestion or intentional overdose in nine cases, and six involved
ipecac abuse in women between 19 and 33 years old with bulimia. Two reports
did not contain description. It is notable that 8 out of 15 ipecac users involved
fatalities. Others caused myopathy, a sort of severe muscle disorder, eye pain
and many other serious diseases.

These must be the tip of iceberg but we cannot clarify the whole picture, because
there are only limited data on Ipecac. The Food and Drug Administration says
that it is not surprising that the Adverse Event Report System data on ipecac
are very limited. Since Ipecac is an Over-The-Counter monograph product there
is no requirement for a drug company to submit adverse event reports to the
FDA. But we know for sure that Ipecac can cause serious problems if we use it.
Therefore, we need to examine several recommendations.

There are three possible solutions for this problem. First, we should throw
all Ipecac Syrup away from our home. According to the article of the Salt Lake
Tribune "Ipecac loses favor with poison-control experts" February
10, 2004, doctors with the AAP say the risks of using ipecac outweigh the benefits"
Some may say we need Ipecac Syrup in case of emergencies. However, according
to the article of Pediatric "Throw out Syrup of Ipecac" February 23
2004, there is no specific evidence that using Ipecac Syrup at home improve
in patient outcome, especially the cases involving children poisoning. Since
Ipecac usually back cupboards, it may take some time to locate, but your cupboards
will undoubtedly be more organized and cleaner as a result. Moreover, the National
Capital Poison recommends asking a doctor or poisoning control center if the
use of Ipecac Syrup is appropriate because with some accidental poisoning, vomiting
is extremely dangerous. This is especially true with a strong acid or anything
that has petroleum or strychnine, according to the article of Healthy Roads
"Ipecac" in January of this year. Furthermore, the death caused by
poisoning has become uncommon in recent year. The American Association of Poison
Control Centers, reported the rate of deaths by poisoning has decreased dramatically
over the past 50 years, from 500 to 25 per year. Second, the sales of Ipecac
Syrup should be banned. In fact, The FDA is now considering removing Ipecac
Syrup from the market. Third, instead of ipecac syrup, we should post universal
phone number for poison control center near the phone 800-222-1222 or 911. We
should call for help in emergencies.

We've examined why we should abandon Ipecac syrup. Ipecac Syrup has some serious
side effects and is often misused; overdosing from Ipecac Syrup and diet abuse
can cause death. Karen Carpenter was the beloved artists all over the world.
But we lost her. We don't any more lives lost by Ipecac Syrup. Therefore, now
is the time to say goodbye to Ipecac Syrup. Good bye!